Since the AAP issued a statement in 2011 recommending that young children remain rear-facing in the car seats until AT LEAST age two, 11 states have written this as law. While the rest of the country has some catching up to do in the legal process, the laws of physics don’t change. I’ve heard many arguments as to why parents choose to ignore this very important safety feature, but once you’ve done your research and watched some crash test comparisons, there’s really no question.
The Car Seat Lady has a great article about this topic which addresses all the concerns parents might have. Many people who have done their research recommend rear-facing until ages three or four.
There are so many components to using a car seat safely and properly. Parents spend hours researching topics like day cares, foods, and products for their children (which are all important too), but it is so crucial that our children are buckled properly. **Remember, car seats’ harnesses don’t “lock” the way adult seat belts do, so the harness must be properly tightened every time.** Many fire stations will help install a car seat or check its installation; just remember, that not everyone doing this has the same level of training.
Some great car seat safety sites are CarSeatsfortheLittles and TheCarSeatLady, among others.
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